There are great players
and then there is great depth. The Badgers
have both. The blocking treasure chest starts
on the left side where two NationalChamps.net
Preseason All-Americans will line up. Senior
tackle Gabe Carimi (6-7, 315) and senior
guard John Moffitt (6-5, 323) will keep
the ground game traditions alive and well
in Madison. Carimi is a big but athletic
presence on the outside and brings 36 career
starts to the table. Moffitt is also versatile
enough to play the center position if need
be which gives offensive line coach Bob
Bostad terrific flexibility. This was the
Big Ten's No. 1 ranked rushing offense in
a league where carrying the football means
life or death. Five starters are back so
in addition to Carimi and Moffitt, seven
other returnees are worthy of breaking into
the first team depth chart, which has equaled
some great competition. Right tackle Josh
Oglesby (6-7, 331) started all but three
games because of an injury. Right guard
Kevin Zeitler (6-4, 312) started every game
in 2009. Center Peter Konz (6-5, 312) started
nine games and three to four others have
shared starting duties at some point in
their career. Paying attention to the size
numbers, it's easy to see where the beef
is located...somewhere on a collegiate football
field in Wisconsin.

Ohio
State

The Big Ten offers a wealth
of offensive lineman as Ohio State continues
the trend here of producing top rated blocking
units. By the end of last season, this group
helped the Buckeyes roll up five straight
games of at least 200 yards rushing. All
five starters are back. Over the past few
seasons this offensive line has been extremely
inconsistent. One moment they look like
world-beaters and at other times they are
far from it. On paper though, this group
is loaded. The feeling after spring ball
is that this could be the year it all comes
together. Center Mike Brewster is getting
used to this system, which is obviously
important as he makes the line calls. Both
tackles J.B. Shugarts and Mike Adams are
looking for their first healthy season.
Coaches were hoping that Adams would step
up this spring and take over the left tackle
spot and he has seemed to accomplish this
task looking slender and stronger. Bryant
Browning is a former tackle that has emerged
as one of the leaders after a very productive
season at guard. At the other guard spot
is NationalChamps.net Preseason All-American
Justin Boren, the former Michigan transfer
who is widely regarded as the best lineman
on this team. His nasty reputation usually
lives up to the billing. If champions are
truly made up front, count Ohio State as
the Big Ten Champion.

Georgia

This could be the best offensive
line in the SEC, which easily equates into
one of the better offensive lines in the
country. Tackle Trinton Sturdivant and guard
Tanner Strickland have been nagged by injuries
the past couple of seasons. Three years
ago, some of these guys played as freshmen
and the future looked ever so bright before
the injury bug bit. Center Ben Jones is
the hard-nosed center that earned All-SEC
recognition last fall. He is a third-year
starter as a true junior. Left tackle Clint
Boling did the same (All-SEC) and also finds
himself on several preseason All-American
lists. Boling is a four-year starter who
has played every position on this line except
center. Guard Cordy Glenn started every
game in 2009 and Chris Davis has 38 on his
career resume. Including right tackle Josh
Davis, all five starters are back from last
year and they are all juniors and seniors.
If this group stays healthy, the Dawgs can
compete for the SEC title despite having
a new quarterback. Great things are expected
out of this group.

Auburn

Like last year, Auburn will
have a proven, SEC-tested line. Four senior
starters are back, and two or three of them
should be suiting up on Sundays in the near
future. That would include Lee Ziemba. The
6'8 left tackle has started 38 straight
games. The other leader is senior center
Ryan Pugh who has started 28 straight games.
Both have been selected as NationalChamps.net
Preseason All-Americans. Pugh and Ziemba
will be four-year starters, which is pretty
rare in this league. Senior Byron Isom can
play either guard spot as can senior Mike
Berry when he is 100% healthy. Berry is
one of the team's biggest blockers and one
of the smartest. The only open spot is at
right tackle where one of the nation's top
JUCO prospects, Roszell Gaydon, is fighting
for the job. Auburn is poised to be one
of the surprise teams out of the SEC based
on a sound running game, a new quarterback
with lots of promise and a veteran offensive
line that will give all of the young skill
people plenty of time to evolve.

Stanford

Four of five members return
from a unit that produced some of the nation's
best numbers a year ago. Granted they took
a hit with the loss of big right tackle
Chris Marinelli, but this should continue
to be on of the nations best regardless
of who carries or throws the football behind
them. The Cardinal allowed only seven sacks
last season, the second fewest in the country,
and also paved the way for Gerhart's national-best
1,871 rushing yards. The anchor is fifth-year
senior Chase Beeler. The former Oklahoma
transfer gives this unit the luxury of having
an experienced leader at the ever-crucial
center position calling the shots. Both
guards who flank Beeler, Andrew Phillips
and David DeCastro, earned All-Pac Ten honorable
mention last fall, as did left tackle Jonathan
Martin. The battle to replace Marinelli
is between a pair of fifth and sixth-year
seniors Derek Hall and James McGillicuddy
respectively.